About the Artist
Courtney Covert is an Austin-based painter whose work explores quiet, intimate moments and the emotional weight carried in everyday objects. Working primarily in oils, she creates soft, atmospheric scenes centered on femininity, memory, and subtle connection.
Her current body of work is connected by a recurring ribbon motif, appearing throughout both figurative compositions and still lifes. It becomes a symbol of attachment, nostalgia, and the things left unsaid. Through warm light, muted colors, and softened edges, her work invites viewers into something that feels personal but still familiar.
Her paintings are less about telling a clear story and more about capturing a feeling, especially the in-between moments that tend to linger.
Why the Ribbon
I return to ribbons because they hold the contrast at the heart of ballet. Long before a ballerina steps onstage, there are hours of strict training, painful preparation, aching feet, and private discipline—most of it invisible to the audience. Then the curtain rises, and all that labor appears graceful, effortless, and beautiful.
That contrast mirrors the way I think about femininity: the work, discomfort, and careful preparation that can sit behind an appearance of ease. In my paintings, the ribbon becomes a thread between what is shown and what is endured, between tenderness and restraint, and between the private act of becoming and the final image the world sees.
I’m excited to be participating in the upcoming Austin Studio Tour. Join my email list for studio details, new work, and exhibition updates.